I write this one month before the July 10 anniversary of 2023 and 2024 flooding as I wonder if Vermont towns, their residents, second home owners and visitors are prepared for another summer flood. Despite frustrations and delays in working with FEMA and state agencies, most towns and road crews[Read More…]
Editorial
Now in Limbo Waiting for Conferees
MONTPELIER – Last week as I left Montpelier on Friday night, the Senate had adjourned till 2 p.m., Saturday. Then, an hour later, The House of Representatives adjourned until June 17. We all got told then that both the House and Senate wouldn’t be coming back until then. Now we’re[Read More…]
OSSU Stays Strong
HARDWICK – In his last newsletter of the school year, Orleans Southwest Supervisory Union (OSSU) Superintendent Dr. David Baker wrote, “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion are under strong attack right now. Earlier this spring, the U.S. Department of Education sent a letter to state officials stating that Title I funding, which[Read More…]
Health Care Failure, Crisis: What Can we do Now?
WOODBURY – Because of failed leadership and misguided waste of Vermonters’ money, our health care system is on the verge of collapse. This did not need to happen. Once again, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Vermont (BCBSVT) is requesting unaffordable rate increases. This is largely because the high cost of care[Read More…]
Missing the Mark on Education Reform
FRANCE – If and when the governor and Legislature agree on something they call “transformational educational reform,” it’s unlikely to be what most people expected or wanted. Vermonters won’t see the property tax relief they were hoping for because changes to the funding system will be a few years off.[Read More…]
For the record
The tree and photos referred to in last week’s story, “Blooming Crabapple Tree Brightens View,” were on Hudson Avenue, not Hudson Street. The final paragraph of last week’s article, “CAE Receives Food Systems Infrastructure Award,” was truncated. It should have read, “At Walden Heights Nursery and Orchard, the award will[Read More…]
Executive Orders To Expect Soon
Faux Gnus Presents More Malodorous Executive Odors (sic) from the (Some Cards Missing) deck (sic) of the Oval Orifice (sic) in the Whites Only House of President-for-Life-Trump. CRAFTSBURY – #51,037. Build a wall along the U.S.-Canadian border to prevent white Americans from escaping from this country. #2,691. Require all school[Read More…]
Still Not Signing: A Superintendent’s Response
The federal government gave us ten days to sign away our values. Here’s our answer. April 8, 2025 To Whom It May (Unfortunately) Concern at the U.S. Department of Education: Thank you for your April 3 memorandum, which I read several times — not because it was legally persuasive, but[Read More…]
We Welcomed More Recent Immigrants
To the editor: Thursday, June 5, I will be attending my 70th reunion at Harvard, that festering nest of treachery in Cambridge, Mass. I hope to see you in a couple of weeks, unless ICE carts all of us away Thursday. That would be truly ironic, because our family has[Read More…]
Americans are Exhausted and Angry
I’ve been worrying a great deal about President Trump’s disregard for the rule of law and his demolition of valuable publicly funded programs and institutions. At the same time, perspective is important: it’s important to understand that Trump and the MAGA movement didn’t just appear out of thin air, or[Read More…]
Woodsmoke
Information Age Isn’t Perfect Yet
I went to school in the days of the library card catalog and “Index to Periodical Literature,” where research involved thumbing through the indexes and writing down what one wanted to go look for elsewhere. The biggest challenge we faced then was finding a library big enough to have what[Read More…]
